Peter Haynes QC

Call: 1983 | Silk: 2008

Introduction

Peter has more than 30 years’ experience in both domestic and international criminal courts. He currently acts as the Lead Counsel for Jean Pierre Bemba at the International Criminal Court and is the Lead Legal Representative of Victims at the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (in the case of the assassination by terrorist bombing of the former Prime Minister, Rafik Hariri). He is one of the very few practitioners to have led cases before the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (where he appeared for the defence of General Vinko Pandurevic in relation to the Srebrenica massacre), the International Criminal Court and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, He has appeared in cases involving genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and international terrorism. He has been responsible for development of the jurisprudence, practice and procedure of the representation of victims in ICL. Domestically, he has appeared for both the prosecution and the defence inter alia in cases of murder, serious fraud, sexual offences, human trafficking and complex conspiracies.

He is familiar with the hardware and software employed in cases of real complexity, including LiveNote, CaseMap, and RingTail . He has overseen the management of large multi-disciplinary legal teams, including experts in several fields.

Peter also works as an independent consultant on international criminal law matters. He has advised both governments and sitting Heads of State, including, inter alia, the Dutch authorities in relation to the shooting down of MH17. He has also been appointed to an international panel of experts to monitor the implementation of mechanisms of transitional justice in Sri Lanka. He regularly lectures and speaks on the topics of the functioning of international criminal courts and victim representation.

What the Directories Say:

“Well known for appearing in cases involving international terrorism and war crimes.” – Legal 500 2019

“He’s great with clients and easy to work with.” – Chambers UK 2019

“He commands the respect of the bench.” – Legal 500

“Knows how to handle difficult matters well and deal with the not inconsiderable pressures these cases bring.” – Legal 500